With development of the information industry and electronics technology, display devices, such as CRT displays, liquid crystal displays, and plasma displays, have come to be widely employed not only in televisions and personal computers, but also in copy machines, facsimile machines, clocks, telephones, etc.
In order to impart, to the display screen of such a display device, a function, such as a scratch-resistant function for protecting the surface of the display screen from breakage or scratches caused by impact thereon, an anti-reflection function, an anti-static function, or an anti-glare function, a functional film formed of a base film having a layer with such a function is stuck to the display screen.
There has been proposed a layered structure including a functional film, and a rubber film which is formed of, for example, silicone rubber, and is directly on one surface of the functional film so that the functional film can be stuck to the display screen of a display device by means of the self-adhesive property of the rubber film (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
For fabrication of such a layered structure, a rubber film is laminated on one surface of a functional film through a procedure in which an unvulcanized rubber film is laminated on one surface of the functional film by method of coating or calendering, followed by heating or irradiation with energy rays, such as UV rays, electron beams, or γ-rays, for crosslinking of the rubber.
However, when such a functional film is exposed to heat or energy rays, such as UV rays, electron beams, or γ-rays, the functional film may undergo changes in properties, or the film may undergo curling or change in size (shrinkage). Such a change in the functional film, which is expensive, may raise serious problems in terms of productivity.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 2000-56694